Recitals in Quarantine - take 2
I have now done two “Quarantine Recitals” and would like to share what I have learned.
First, the benefits of having a recital.
Recitals provide a goal to work towards. It helps to give purpose and motivation towards lessons and practice time.
Recitals give an opportunity for the student to show off, it builds self esteem and boosts confidence.
Recitals build community. It allows the parents the reward for their time and money commitment. Recitals pave ways for grandparents, siblings, extended family and friends to support the blossoming musician.
Second, THREE OPTIONS for Recitals in Quarantine
Pre-recorded - have parents record the students playing their recital pieces at home. Once all the videos have been sent in, the teacher can compile them into one long video or embed them into a blog or email. Here is my Spring Recital. The benefits of this option: stress free performance for the student, more flexible scheduling, a permanent record of the recital, easily sent out to friends and family. The cons of this method: teacher & parents need to be somewhat tech savvy, more time intensive on the teachers part.
Virtual Recital - create a virtual recital using Zoom where students perform from their homes and friends and families watch from their own homes. Create a schedule and recital program that gets emailed out prior to the recital start up. Zoom also allows you to record the meeting so you would have a permanent record. Benefits: easily meets quarantine requirements of any state in the U. S., less time intensive for the teacher, have a permanent record, students can hear each other play. Cons: tech savvy, less flexible schedule, technology issues, zoom has a 40 minute time limit on larger calls.
Mini-Recitals - if you are doing in home lessons and are comfortable having people in your house, schedule individual family recitals. I did a week of mini-recitals - each family came during their regular lesson time but instead of a lesson, we did a recital. I capped attendance at 10 people but still had Zoom on so more friends and family could sign in to watch the recital. I ran each mini-recital like I would a full recital complete with welcoming remarks, student performances, a teacher performance, and refreshments at the end. Benefits: slightly more formal (thus more motivating) environment, specialness of live music, building of community, having it during their regular lesson makes scheduling easier. Cons: more time intensive on the teacher (I am ended up having 12 thirty minute recitals rather than one 2 hour recital).
Lastly, a how to create an “As Close to Normal” Recital as possible.
Have Welcoming Remarks - thank the students for their hard work, thank the parents for their commitment, thank the broader community for their support of the student.
Present a Donation Opportunity - especially for a Christmas Recital, I like to present a music related charity that I personally support as a way for families to honor their piano student with opportunities for a donation to a music related charity. My charity of choice is SWAN - a charity that provides free music lessons to students who have at least one parent in jail. Using music to try and break cycles of incarceration.
Refreshments - I love to bake cookies so I kept my refreshments simple - Christmas Cookies & hot chocolate. I set out cookies, paper plates, napkins, and cups and it is was simple and sweet. You don’t have to do homemade - feel free to buy treats from the store or even ask parents to bring something.
Compliment Exchange - If you choose an option for students in which students listen to one another play, consider doing a Compliment Exchange. I have done them for years and they are tremendous fun. I even create an online contact for people to email me their compliments for other students. Here is a resource I created that explains and supports a COMPLIMENT EXCHANGE.
